You are on a trip to Canada during summer vacation. In the morning you turn on the news
to hear projections for the the day’s weather. When the weather forecaster announces
that the temperature is 28 degrees, you quickly realize that she is reporting the tempera-
ture using the Celsius scale. You remember from school that on the Celsius scale water
freezers at 0 degrees and boils at 100 degrees. On the Fahrenheit scale water freezes at 32
degrees and boils at 212 degrees.- Write a paragraph explaining your strategy for translating Celsius temperatures into
Fahrenheit temperatures. - Present a mathematical formula for translating Celsius temperatures into Fahrenheit
temperatures. - Create a chart showing the Fahrenheit equivalents for the temperatures 20–30 degrees
Celsius.
D. Sample Middle-Level General Science Problem Solving
This activity assesses student understanding of the process of scientific exploration. It en-
courages students to observe closely and systematically, establish criteria, evaluate similari-
ties and differences, and draw conclusions based on recorded observations.
·Provide an individual or team of students with a bag containing 12 assorted items (e.g.,
metal nails, bones, crayons, coins, plastic spoon, rock, screwdriver, ceramic cup, dried
beans, rubber band, CD, stick).
·Students must write descriptions of each item, create categories (e.g., shape, color, func-
tion, whether it is part of something else, whether it was made by people, etc.) that allow
them to sort the items, divide the items into the different categories, and then write ex-
planations for their choice of categories and their assignment of the items.E. Sample Middle-Level Written Response Question
for English or Social Studies
This format provides students with information orally and in writing. It requires them to use
the information to take and support a position and present it in written form. Teachers can
change or modify the reading passage depending on their experience with the academic per-
formance of students in a class, topics being discussed in a unit, or student interest. Possible
speeches include Sojourner Truth, “Ain’t I a Woman”; Abraham Lincoln, “Gettysburg Ad-
dress”; Margaret Chase Smith, “Republican Declaration of Conscience”; John F. Kennedy,
“First Inaugural Address”; Martin Luther King Jr., “I Have a Dream”; Malcolm X, “Message to
the Grass Roots”; Ronald Reagan, “The Evil Empire.” As an alternative, students can write let-
ters in response to an article in the local newspaper on a controversial issue. Students can
share their letters and selected pieces can be submitted to the editors for publication.
Directions to students: You are on a committee trying to decide which speech from U.S.
history will be reprinted in the eighth-grade yearbook. I will read a speech aloud to the
class and then you will have an opportunity to read it to yourselves. After I read it aloud a
second time, you must write a letter to the eighth-grade advisor explaining why you be-
lieve this speech should or should not be selected. In your answer, explain the criteria you
are using to select a speech. Provide specific examples from the speech that show how itASSESSMENT 213